Will Ferrell Doc In, Christopher Reeve Doc Out: Snubs & Surprises From Oscar Documentary Shortlist
deadline.comWill & Harper, the Netflix documentary about comedic actor Will Ferrell and his friendship with SNL pal Harper Steele who came out as trans, earned a spot on the coveted Oscar documentary feature shortlist today.
It wasn’t the only shortlist honor for the film directed by Josh Greenbaum. The tune from the closing credits – “Will and Harper Go West,” written by SNL alum Kristen Wiig and Sean Douglas and performed by Wiig – got shortlisted for Best Original Song (Douglas is the son of actor Michael Keaton).
But another high-profile documentary in the running for the shortlist didn’t make the cut: Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, about the late actor who was paralyzed in a horse-riding accident.
That film, directed by Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui, recently won Best Documentary Feature at the Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and last week earned a nomination for the Producers Guild of America Award. [Scroll for full list of shortlisted features and short documentaries] Aside from Will & Harper, feature documentaries with a celebrity element did not fare particularly well in shortlist voting (the list is determined by the Academy’s Documentary Branch, which will also choose the eventual five Oscar nominees in the category).
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